Jessica Merchant, the cookbook author behind How Sweet Eats, loves riffing on classics. She got her start as a blogger and cookbook author by taking recipes she knew and loved and adapting them. Macaroni and cheese is one of those traditional favourites. In developing this recipe, she focussed on an easy, creamy and delicious version that’s perfect for a decadent meal (or anytime, really).

For Jessica, who has no shortage of experience inventing delicious versions of the dish (see: Pizza Supreme Mac and Cheese!), her grandmother's mac and cheese set the standard to live up to. It’s a food memory that has rebuffed years of testing recipes said to be “the best mac and cheese ever.” Unfortunately, although Jessica watched her grandmother make her version of the dish for years, she never got the full recipe. “[My grandmother] went by the feel of the wooden spoon in the cheese sauce and how golden the bread crumbs looked on top, and would stir the dish in the oven to make sure it was creamy enough,” Jessica said.

We love that kind of intuition, but it’s not so easy to replicate. After “years trying to perfect her method,” this epic recipe is pretty close to recreating the magic, with “fontina and Parmesan giv[ing] this dish a sharp, cheesy flavour while melting perfectly,” and bread crumbs that make for “the perfect crunchy topping.”

This mac and cheese is a little different from other recipes you’ve come across — no cheddar or American cheese here! —but it taps into that same classic comfort in a way that’s really special. Baked in a cast-iron skillet in your Ooni oven, it takes only 10 minutes to get bubbly, ooey and gooey.

This recipe appears in Taking Thanksgiving Classics for a Spin. Find more Thanksgiving recipes here.

Bio- Jessica Merchant is a full-time recipe developer and writer who happens to be crazy passionate about all things food. She is the author of The Pretty Dish and Seriously Delish, and details her adventures in and out of the kitchen on her popular blog, How Sweet Eats, which is read by millions. She lives in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with her family. Follow her on Instagram @howsweeteats.